Preseason already? I guess that means the Supersonicsoul Summer Vacation is over . . . (sigh).
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Rashard Lewis scored 13 of his 17 points in the third quarter and the Seattle SuperSonics defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 99-89 on Wednesday night in the first preseason game for both teams.
Zach Randolph had 20 points and seven rebounds for Portland, which squandered an 11-point lead.
Dan Dickau, acquired in a draft-day trade, scored eight straight points and gave the Blazers a 35-24 lead in the first half. Jarrett Jack and draft pick Sergio Rodriguez made consecutive 3-pointers to give Portland a 53-45 halftime lead.
Lewis' third-quarter outburst helped close the gap to 70-67, and Nick Collison's layup gave Seattle a 73-72 lead.
Read the rest here.
8 comments:
You've got to love this paragraph from the AP story:
"Seattle finished last season 35-47, a year after winning the Northwest Division title. But the Sonics have their top eight players back from last year, including All-Stars Lewis and Ray Allen."
Let me get this straight - the Sonics sucked eggs last year, but we should be happy because the guys responsible for it are all back? Why, because that means they don't have to change the quick dials on their cell phones? Because the Sonics saved a bundle in moving expenses?
Other things sticking out from the box score:
1. Wilcox Watch: 7 pts, 6 boards in 20 minutes. That's the equivalent of 12/11 in regular minutes. I'll take that for his averages this year and be profoundly happy.
2. Nate was right to get a T; the Blazers shot 23 FTs, the Sonics 45.
3. Nick Collison making his case for more minutes: a double-double in less than 30 minutes.
Good to see you guys are still alive and well.
Did you see the Frank Hughes article where Hill mentions he might only use a 8 or 8-1/2 man rotation? Me thinks that means no minutes for Gelabale and only spot minutes for the backup center(s), and yes, big minutes for Collison.
I saw that as well; despite all the talk about him in the pre-season and over the summer, I think we'll be seeing alot more "Sene-DNP-CD" than we will "Sene, 8 points, 5 rebounds" this year. Just looking at the top 8 1/2, you've got:
Allen, Lewis, Frodo, Watson, Wilcox, Swift, Petro, Wilkins, & Gelabale.
That was the beauty of having AD in Seattle. Not only could he come in for Ridnour, but he could also play alongside Luke and replace Allen. There's no way Watson and Ridnour can play at the same time, though, which means that one of them has to sit at all times. Kind of screws up the flexibility of the lineup.
Forgot to include Collison in that list. My bad.
"There's no way Watson and Ridnour can play at the same time"
Why not? Hill used that line-up quite a bit last season.
I just don't see how you can run out 2 guards who are both under 6'2" and expect to stop anyone defensively. You're just asking for trouble, in my mind.
Take the Blazers, which of those 2 would be able to stop Brandon Roy in the post? Say the Lakers put Kobe at the 2; is Watson going to stop him?
It's also worth noting that in the 3 5-man lineups the Sonics employed with Watson/Ridnour, the Sonics had a -21 +/- with that lineup, as opposed to the +55 mark Watson put up with someone other than Ridnour on the court with him (granted, that somebody was usually Ray Allen, but still).
It's true, there will be times when Seattle's opponent (say, the Nuggets, for example) will have a smallish PG and SG, but it's not going to happen very often. For 90% of the season, one of those two will have to sit.
Just FYI guys:
Frank Hughes new blog kicks ass:
http://blogs.thenewstribune.com/sonics/
-Q
Thanks for the tip, Q. I think Hughes is by far the snarkiest of all the beat guys. You're right, though, his blog has alot of great stuff. My only complaint is that it's yet another blog on the internet and there's just too many of them already. Oh, wait a sec ...
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